Our celebs had a lot on their plates in the semi-finals. They had to perform an individual Ballroom and Latin number (including a brief solo dance section) AND then perform the dance they had prepared in case they were ever in a dance-0ff.
Round One
Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson: Donny was nervous about the semis since he had been in last place the previous week. To help him get into character for the Tango, Kym brought in last season hottie Gilles Marini. His advice was that Donny needed to make people feel uncomfortable watching this Tango. Well, that’s what happened – but not in the way Donny wanted. During the dance it almost looked like they were fighting against each other and the missed steps were obvious. Donny looked really upset when it was over. He said he lost focus when he saw sister Marie in the crowd but we also saw that Kym’s heel had become tangled in the hem of her dress. Head judge Len Goodman called it a shame because the Argentine Tango had gone so well for Donny. Bruno Tonioli said that, normally, Donny’s a master at hiding mistakes but he couldn’t cover it up this time. Carrie Ann Inaba called it rough but congratulated them on making it through. Scores: Carrie Ann – 7, Len – 7, Bruno – 7. Total = 21. Donny said the judges were very kind.
Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough: I loved this setup clip. Derek was shown getting very frustrated during the rehearsals with Joanna so his former partner (and DWTS champ) Brooke Burke showed up to get him grounded. They both did hilarious impressions of him. Derek may get himself worked up sometimes but the guy does create some stunning choreography. This Waltz was lovely and some of the moves were striking. Joanna struggled to get into one of the poses but, overall, it was classy and graceful. Bruno said it had the grace of angels in heaven but there was the slightest hesitation that kept it from being paradise. Ah, Bruno. Carrie Ann said Joanna can take her breath away when she dances but, when she does a reaching move, she needs to have a reason behind it. Len thought her hold was as good as any professional. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27.
Kelly Osbourne & Louis van Amstel: In their rehearsal clip, we saw Kelly get a call from her dad saying that one of their dogs had died. She, of course, was in tears. Louis said it was a sign of how much Kelly has grown that she stayed and kept rehearsing. The old Kelly would have gone home. As I mentioned above, the celebs had to do a brief solo in the Latin dances. Kelly & Louis were given the Rumba and that’s a tough one to solo in. I thought it turned out to be a bit dull. On the other hand, Carrie Ann said that Kelly brought her to tears. She added that Kelly isn’t the best dancer but she reaches into Carrie Ann’s heart. Len didn’t feel it was one of Kelly’s best dances but it certainly wasn’t the worst. Bruno said Kelly is endearing but some parts of the dance weren’t as perfect as they should have been. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno -8. Total = 24.
Mya & Dmitry Chaplin: Their setup piece was meant to show us how devoted Mya is to the competition. I don’t think we needed that proven since she already seems like one of the pros. Their Waltz was absolutely stunning and was the kind of dance that wins the trophy. It was the best characterization Mya’s had so far. Len thought it was a joy to watch. Bruno called it “love set to music”. Carrie Ann said Mya always has the potential to get 10’s but she felt they were slightly disconnected in the hold. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 10. Total – 28.
Round Two – This round featured biographical clips of all the celebs and, frankly, I don’t know how any of them could dance after watching these tearjerkers. I was a mess!
Donny & Kym: This was a great comeback dance for Donny. They performed to “One Bad Apple” and, yes, I’m enough of an Osmond geek to recognize the classic Osmond Brothers moves. As unhappy as Donny was after the Tango was how happy he was after this Samba. Bruno said that a bit of a stumble doesn’t stop a professional. It was carefree and fun like a Samba should be. Carrie Ann said it was certainly better than the Tango but it seemed a bit sloppy. Len agreed with Bruno. He called it a “metamorphoses”. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 26.
Joanna & Derek: Their Cha Cha was good (and I got a kick out of Joanna singing along) but it was an oddly low-key dance. Carrie Ann loved it and said Joanna truly was a dancer. Len thought it was clean and crisp but could have been a bit more “cheeky”. Bruno called Joanna “natural sex”. Tom just shook his head. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27.
Kelly & Louis: Their Quickstep as uneven. Parts were very good but there were also some pretty clear missteps. Len said it was beyond his expectations. As a performer, and a person, Kelly had blown him away. Bruno acknowledged there was a mistake but added the dance was light, fast-footed and in sync. Carrie Ann thought Kelly nailed it. Kelly then tearfully thanked the judges for all their comments saying it was part of what has been giving her the confidence to keep coming back. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27.
Mya & Dmitry: Wow, wow and wow! That was about as hot as a dance can get. I’ll say it – the girl deserves to win this thing. Bruno said only one word could describe it – sensational. Carrie Ann called it hot beyond belief. Len declared, “Tutti frutti, what a booty.” He said Mya deserves to be in the finale. Scores: Carrie Ann – 10, Len – 10, Bruno – 10. Total = 30. It’s times like this when you wish there was an 11 paddle.
Knock-Out Dances
Donny & Kym: They chose to dance the Jitterbug. It was the perfect kind of dance for Donny – very energetic. Carrie Ann said Donny needed to be good and, thank God, he got his mojo back. Len told Donny that 2 out of 3 wasn’t bad and Bruno called it upbeat and full of vigor. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27. Total for the night – 74.
Joanna & Derek: They picked the Salsa. It was fun, but not as flashy as I expected. Len called it hot, tasty and full of spice. Bruno said it was delicious and flirtatious and Carrie Ann told Joanna that she would love to see her in the finals. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27. Total for the night – 81.
Kelly & Louis: They went with the Cha Cha. It was short and cute – just like Kelly. Bruno said it might have been a “quickie” but it worked for him. Carrie Ann thought Kelly did a great job with finishing her lines and Len was pleased that all three of her dances were well done. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27. Total for the night – 78.
Mya & Dmitry: They picked the Cha Cha as well. Mya had a great night and seemed to be having the time of her life. Carrie Ann said the beginning of the dance didn’t speak to her. Bruno replied “You’re deaf!” Len was disappointed because he wanted it to go on longer and Bruno called it an action packed trailer for a blockbuster. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len - 10, Bruno – 10. Total = 29. Total for the night 87 out of 90. Wow!
So, we ended the evening with Donny & Kym in last place but my guess is that Kelly & Louis are the ones in real jeopardy.
Full episodes of DWTS are available at ABC’s website here:
Posted on December 16th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Comedy, Music
Move over, Jay-Z. Stephen Colbert is takin’ it suburban. Last night he and Alicia Keys performed the best version of “Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down” ever.
Posted on December 13th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Music
I love this kid. He’s a pretty good ukulele player but it’s his interpretation of the lyrics of the Jason Mraz song, “I’m Yours”, that really make the performance.
Posted on December 6th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Amazing Race
Aired 11-15-09
We picked back up in Stockholm, Sweden. After a mandatory rest period, first place team and Harlem Globetrotters Flight Time & Big Easy departed at 2:23AM. The teams had to travel by ferry 236 miles across the Baltic Sea to Tallinn, Estonia. Once there, they had to sort through keys to open the door at a building called Mustpeade. The Trotters seem to be viewing Sam & Dan as the biggest competition left in the race. They were hoping to get a good lead on the brothers but, at the ferry dock, they learned that the next boat to Estonia wasn’t going to leave until 5:45PM. It was looking like we’d get a race reboot.
The second team to depart was dating couple Meghan & Cheyne at 4:12AM. They had some trouble making decisions in the last leg but were now just focused on staying in the lead. They were followed by married couple Brian & Ericka at 4:37AM. They weren’t getting hung up on the fact that they had yet to win a leg of the race. Brian said the only leg that matters is the final one.
The brothers, Sam & Dan, were the 4th team out at 5:04AM. Sam was hopeful that they’d learned their lesson in the last leg and would be able to keep their bickering under control. The last team to depart was father and son duo, Gary & Matt, at 6:29AM. Gary said he’d been apprehensive about the race and, specifically, about son Matt seeing his flaws. He was grateful that Matt has been accepting. I’m not sure what those flaws were supposed to be. Together they’ve been one of the calmest and most likeable of teams.
They all made the 5:45PM ferry boat. The trip took about 16 hours but they did get sleeper cabins - that were about the size of a closet. Once they docked, the Trotters lead the charge off the ferry (with a fair amount of trash-talking) but it was Meghan & Cheyne who were the first to get a taxi. They were also the first to arrive at Mustpeade but the brothers were right behind them and the two teams worked together to find the correct key to open the door. Inside they found a Roadblock.
Roadblock
One team member had to join the Brotherhood of the Blackheads (a secret society of merchants) to solve a mystery. They would go into the cellar (where a Blackhead party was taking place) and find a candelabra with a room number attached. They then had to locate that room where they would be given a blank scroll. They had to figure out that the writing would only show if the scroll was held over a lit candle. Cheyne and Sam took the challenge.
Brian & Ericka and Gary & Matt were the next to arrive at Mustpeade but this was also the location of the Speed Bump. Since Gary & Matt had been saved from elimination on the last leg, they had to perform an additional task. They had to take a 5 minute sauna with some locals in a Saunabuss – yes, a bus that was a sauna. They were relieved it was something that simple.
By the time Brian & Ericka got the door open, the Trotters had arrived and just followed them in. Ericka and Flight Time set about to solve the mystery. Locating the rooms proved to be harder than it seemed. Even though Cheyne and Sam had been looking for quite a while, it was Flight Time who was the first to locate his room. Unfortunately he didn’t benefit from this because he fell for a trick. The show put a little red crayon next to the scroll so Flight immediately started rubbing the crayon all over the scroll.
Cheyne was the next to find his room and he had much better luck with the scroll. He immediately took it to the candle and quickly saw the next clue taking the racers to the Pikk Hermann Tower Garden. Ericka also got the clue quickly and the two teams headed to the Tower together.
Gary & Matt finished their sauna and got the Mustpeade door open but their troubles were just beginning. Poor Matt had no clue what a candelabra was. It was a little sad watching him wander about the cellar trying to get one of the Blackheads to tell him what it was. While Matt was stuck in the cellar, Sam and Flight Time finally found the Tower clue.
Eventually Matt figured out that the “candle” part of candelabra was important and started looking for his room.
Detour
Brian & Ericka and Meghan & Cheyne found the cluebox in the Tower Garden and it was a Detour. The choices were “Serve” and “Sling”. In “Serve” the teams had to play volleyball against a local team – in a bog. They would be knee deep in muck and would have to score 5 points. In “Sling” the teams still had to stand in the mud but would use a slingshot to fire vegetables at a target. When they hit the target, a table full of cabbages would fall revealing the clue. Both teams opted for “Serve” and headed out to find a taxi. They both spotted one at the same time but Brian let Meghan & Cheyne take it as long as the cab driver called another taxi for them. Meghan then proceeded to order their driver not to call.
Meanwhile Matt found the clue about Pikk Hermann Tower – but he missed the word Garden. It really wasn’t looking good for this pair.
Sam & Dan and Flight & Easy got to the garden and also went with the volleyball. The two teams argued a bit over who spotted a taxi first but, since it was a van, ended up sharing it. There was definitely some frustration building between these teams.
After losing a significant amount of time trying to get into the Tower, Gary & Matt finally spotted the cluebox. They decided to do the slingshot challenge.
Meghan & Cheyne were the first to arrive at the Detour spot and they immediately stripped down to their undies and crawled into the muck. The game was a mess – but pretty funny. The dating couple scored their five points before any other team had arrived at the site. The next clue directed them to run to the Pit Stop at the Keava Raba Overlook Tower. They checked in first and won a red cedar sauna.
Meanwhile Brian & Ericka, Flight & Easy and Sam & Dan wandered about the bog looking for the Detour spot. Once they figured out where they were going, the guys all outran Ericka. Because only two teams could play volleyball at one time, she and Brian went a few steps over to the slingshot challenge. Sadly for them, they missed seeing Sam & Dan in their underwear in the mud. Now normally that wouldn’t be a big deal but, with these two, there was some serious pixilation of a certain area of their anatomy. We’ve had a lot of underwear moments on this show but I don’t ever remember this much censoring being needed.
The Trotters won their game first but headed in the wrong direction to find the tower. This resulted in a footrace between them and the brothers. Flight and Dan collided along the narrow wooden path and both wiped out. Dan got up quickly but Flight seemed a bit banged up.
Sam & Dan checked in 2nd.
Flight Time & Big Easy were 3rd.
Host Phil Keoghan could sense the tension between the teams. Dan said that Flight came up behind him and tried to push him taking them both down. Easy thought Dan had thrown an elbow to knock out Flight. The show aired the collision a couple times and, I have to say, Dan’s account seemed more accurate. Anyway, Easy said they didn’t realize that the physical stuff was in play adding, “I’m 6′10″, 260, so we’re gonna do what we gotta do.” I like the Trotters, but that comment made Big Easy look ridiculous.
The editing made it seem that Gary & Matt arrived at the challenge site just as Brian hit the target. I suspect they were much further behind than that.
Brian & Ericka checked in 4th.
Gary & Matt kept going. They hit the target with a radish and ran to the tower where Phil told them they were eliminated. Gary broke down as he talked about how proud he was of his son. Coming into the show these two were depicted as not being particularly close but they have been one of the most delightful child/parent teams ever. They were always kind, patient and respectful of each other.
Next Week: We’re in Prague and Sam & Dan steal Brian & Ericka’s taxi. Hmmm. I’m not sure it’s wise for them to make an enemy of yet another team.
Full episodes and bonus clips of TAR are available at CBS’ website here:
Posted on December 1st, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Biggest Loser
Aired 11-10-09
Our group, sans Tracey, had returned to the ranch and we opened with them meeting up on the grounds with host Alison Sweeney. She announced that there would be a double elimination this week. They were about to go from 8 to 6. At the weigh in there would be the traditional yellow line but, for this week, there would also be a red line. The person with the lowest percent of weight lost would fall below the red line and automatically be sent home. The next two lowest would go through the regular elimination process. But first, they had to face this week’s Pop Challenge.
Pop Challenge
The winner of the challenge would get a one pound advantage at the weigh in. Amanda and Liz couldn’t participate for medical reasons so they were out of luck. The other six had to jump up and grab tennis balls off of a board. They then had to run over and drop the ball into a bucket. The first person to get 50 balls into their bucket would win. A tall guy, like Rudy, would definitely seem to have an advantage but they mitigated some of that by varying how high the balls were placed on the board based on each person’s height. Allen got off to an early lead just ahead of Rudy. In the end, it was Rebecca who was running neck and neck with Allen but he was the ultimate victor.
We then learned that the house had naturally divided itself into two informal teams: the “older” group (Liz, Danny, Rudy and Allen) and the “younger” (Amanda, Rebecca, Shay and Daniel). Whichever “team” had the person who fell below the red line would be at a big disadvantage when it came time for the regular elimination vote.
Trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels checked in with the group to get the results of the D.C. elimination. Jillian thought it was ironic that Tracey was sent home saying, “I finally am able to stand the sight of this girl and now she’s gone.” They then got the bombshell about the double elimination and they were not pleased. They dismissed everyone and talked the situation over. Jill said that, while they never wanted to get into a discussion about who “needed” or “deserved” to be there, the truth was that Shay did. Jill really saw it as a life or death question. Bob didn’t want to play God but Jill felt they had to do it. After some resistance she was able to get him to look at it more as deciding who was most able to handle the “real world” as opposed to who needed to stay. The trick was that we didn’t see them decide who the person was who was most ready to go home.
In the workouts, Jill really drove Shay. The poor girl was exhausted and crying but Jill wasn’t having any of it. She told Shay that the time for tears and drama was over. She had to be focused and strong. Jill wanted to ensure that Shay, at least, didn’t fall below the red line. She wanted Shay to have a fighting chance.
Jillian then set her sights on Rebecca. Rebecca, though, didn’t handle it as well as Shay. In a scene that looked exactly like Amanda’s previous meltdown, Rebecca said she couldn’t deal with anything else and walked out of the gym. Ironically it was Amanda who talked her through all the drama.
Jill met up a bit later with Rebecca and Shay and found them stressing out about the red line. That provided the perfect opportunity for:
Product Placement Alert 1: Sooner or later they’ll be going home so they needed to plan on finding a 24 Hour Fitness Center near them and taking advantage of the Biggest Loser promotion to work out with a friend. Sometimes I find their lack of subtlety almost endearing.
Challenge
Next up our group met Ali at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. For this challenge they were all going to, literally, jump through hoops. The prize was immunity. They would have to jump on a trampoline and dive through the hoops and land on a crash mat on the other side. It sounds more dramatic than it really was because the hoops were pretty low to the ground. Each hoop had a name on it. Each time someone jumped through a hoop, the person whose name was on it would get a point. At 100 points that person would be knocked out of the game. The “young” team went after Liz first. They felt she was at serious risk of falling below one of the lines and they wanted to make sure she didn’t get immunity. The “older” group went after Amanda because she was fast and could rack up the most points against them. Liz was the first to go, followed by Amanda and Daniel. Allen and Rebecca were next leaving just Danny, Rudy and Shay in the challenge. That’s when things got interesting. When the challenge began, Rudy and Shay were standing next to each other. They seemed to agree to not go after each other’s hoops until the very end of the challenge. The debate was what was meant by “the end”. Shay thought it meant they wouldn’t jump through each other’s hoops until they were the last two. Rudy seemed to mean the end was when one of the informal teams was on their last person. Since Shay was the last of the young ones, Rudy and Danny concentrated on her hoop. That started some trash talking between Shay and Rudy and they said some very, very harsh things. Shay told Rudy he had no integrity and Rudy said Shay had no character. It wasn’t a great moment for either of them. In the end it was Danny vs. Rudy but, at that point, Rudy only had 4 points so he easily won. They all walked away from the challenge with a full appreciation of how divided the house now was.
The young ones decided to get tricky. They took a couple of spin bikes out of the gym and hid them in Shay’s room. The four secretly worked out at night in the hopes of making the older team think they were slacking off. That was a questionable strategy. Sleep is important to health and fitness and they might have ended up exhausting themselves to the point of being counterproductive.
Bob arrived to take the group to a trapeze workout but first, he called aside Liz and Danny to do:
Product Placement Alert 2: for the Larabar - a healthy alternative to a snack bar. Liz got in trouble, though, because she immediately started chowing down on one instead of saving it for later. Bob commented that she really was an emotional eater.
Weigh In
Since Rudy had immunity he weighed in first. He lost 8 pounds for a total of 2.41%.
Shay lost 17 pounds for a total of 4.33%. She had lost exactly 100 pounds in 9 weeks setting a new BL record for female contestants.
Amanda lost 5 pounds for a total of 2.42%.
Rebecca lost 10 pounds for a total of 4.57%.
Danny lost 17 pounds for a total of 5.11%. He’d lost a total of 114 pounds.
Allen lost 10 pounds which, combine with his one pound advantage, totaled 4.35%.
Liz lost 12 pounds for a total of 5.50%.
Daniel lost just 5 pounds for a total of 1.92%. He was below the red line and heading home. He was actually one of the more composed people in the room. Rebecca was a mess and ran over to give him a hug.
Shay and Amanda were below the yellow line so it was a bad night all around for the young ones. Ali gave the group an hour to decide how to vote.
Shay tearfully told the group she wasn’t there to play a game. She was there so she could live. Amanda said she fought to be on the show and it was the first time she’d done something positive for herself.
In the elimination room poor Rebecca had to vote first. She said that she couldn’t vote to send home the person who originally chose her to be a teammate, so she wrote down Shay’s name. Allen voted for Shay because he felt she’d made great strides and had gained control. Danny voted for Amanda because he felt the person with the most to lose (Shay) should stay. Liz wrote Amanda’s name because she was playing the game and thought Amanda would get a good percentage at the next weigh in. That left it up to Rudy. He voted for Shay because she’d set and achieved a goal. Shay said she was OK because she was leaving with her word, integrity and a BL record.
In the “Where They Are Now” clip we learned that Shay has another goal. She wants to lose more than 212 pounds by the finale and set another BL record for most weight lost on the show. Daniel has now lost a total of 215 pounds over two seasons. We watched as he met up with his first teammate, David, who looks to be the same size he was when they both started. It was a little tough to watch because David is still a man in an unhealthy place. Losing weight just isn’t a priority. Daniel pledged to be there for him when he’s ready.
Next Week: It’s makeover time with Tim Gunn.
Full episodes and bonus clips of BL are available at NBC’s website here:
